Digital Commons Network^™

Data Collection In The Field: Lessons From Two Case Studies Conducted In Belize, Rico Kongsager

The Qualitative Report

There is a vast load of literature concerning how data collection can be conducted. This literature provides guidelines and recommendations on how data collection might be done, however, only a very limited part of this literature describes in detail how data actually are collected in the field. This paper is intended to be an example, where the methodology is explained in detail to assist and inspire other researchers, on their way to conduct interesting and important research. The data collection and fieldwork described in this paper were conducted to complete two case studies in Belize, Central America. The core of …

Global And Regional Perspectives On Large-Landscape And Transboundary Conservation, Sanober R. Mirza

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

With the growing pressure of environmental degradation and exploitation to social and ecological landscapes around the world, conservationists are looking for new approaches to address the complex nature of transboundary issues. Large-landscape conservation supports conservation and management of ecosystems, wildlife, and resources in a more holistic approach that extends beyond protected area boundaries. Transboundary conservation, a distinct form of large-landscape conservation, operates across political and spatial scales by involving two or more countries cooperating to protect a border resource or ecosystem. Though the recognition of large-landscape and transboundary conservation is growing, there is limited understanding of trends across these types …

Primitive Palms: A Density Study On The Impacts Of Harvesting Natural Materials For Construction Purposes On Sumak Allpa Of The Amazon Rainforest, Zachary Bull

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In an effort to better understand how rural construction techniques affect a surrounding environment, this study combines a density test of the natural building materials used in the construction of a school on Sumak Allpa island of the Orellana Province in the Amazon basin of Ecuador. The focus of the study measures the density of the bamboo species Guadua angustifolia and the Panama hat plant Carludovica palmata on the island while noting a comprehensive compilation of the techniques and materials used in the building process. Using a mix of plots and transects, a comparison of harvested material to remaining material …

Lepidopteran Diversity And Abundance Across Five Different Indigenously Managed Land Use Zones In The Naso-Teribe Territory, Bocas Del Toro Province, Panama, Eli Dotson

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Lepidopterans, the order that includes both moths and butterflies, are among the best-known insects taxonomically and ecologically due to the relative ease of monitoring them in comparison to other groups of insects. Their distribution follows that of other insects and forms of life, as around 90% of species have a tropical distribution. This incredibly speciose group of animals fills many vital roles in the ecosystems they inhabit, including herbivores in their larval stages, prey for a variety of predators in all life stages, and pollinators for many plant species as adults. In some circumstances, certain species may also serve as …

Translating Global Nature: Territoriality, Environmental Discourses, And Ecocultural Identities, José R. Castro-Sotomayor

Communication ETDs

In this study, I explore environmental discourses circulating among Indigenous transboundary organizations working on environmental initiatives at the border between Ecuador and Colombia. I focus on three global environmental discourses –sustainability, development, and climate change– as they are at the core of the global environmental governance vernacular. La Gran Familia Awá Binacional (GFAB), one of the few transboundary Indigenous organizations working along the binational border, utilizes these global concepts to frame their environmental initiatives and projects. I use a critical and interpretive qualitative approach to investigate, deconstruct, and rearticulate global environmental discourses circulating among and translated by two of the …

Herpetofauna Of Sumak Allpa: A Baseline Assessment Of An Unstudied Island Herpetofaunal Community, Sara Freimuth

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Sumak Allpa is an island dedicated to the provision and protection of habitat for the conservation and rehabilitation of primates. As such, the island - a varzea ecosystem located in the Western Amazon of Ecuador, one of the most biodiverse and also most threatened regions in the world – consists of protected primary forest that is home not only to a variety of primates, but also to an even wider variety of other taxa, nearly all of which have gone unstudied on the island. The present investigation assessed two of those taxa, amphibians and reptiles, in order to establish a …

Harpy Eagle (Harpia Harpyja) Conservation: Juvenile Behavior And Diet At A Nest Near Pijibasal, Darien, Hannah Rodgers

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The Harpy Eagle (Harpia harpyja), the largest and most powerful bird of prey in the Americas, is declining throughout its range in Neotropical forests. Hunting and deforestation threaten populations in the most important remaining eagle habitat in Central America, the Darien province of Panama. These eagles may have the longest postfledging juvenile dependency of any raptor, though juvenile behavior during this period is poorly studied. This study monitored an 11-month-old juvenile for 7 days at a nest near the indigenous community of Pijibasal in order to study behavior and diet. Researchers recorded the juvenile’s location and behavior, studied prey remains …

Attitudes And Barriers To Women’S Participation In A Proposed Community-Based Conservation Program In Western Belize, Amanda Shay Kaeser

Doctoral Dissertations

World conservation issues have been addressed in many ways around the world. The use of community-based conservation (CBC) as a method to reduce harmful practices has gained in popularity in the past few decades. This dissertation reports results from a pre-analysis of a proposed CBC program in western Belize. Through qualitative interviews with 47 stakeholders, and a quantitative survey with 486 Belizean women, we determined that a CBC program designed especially for women should be successful. Some of the aspects of a program that women expressed a desire for was more conservation and forest education. However, contrary to our assumption …

Long Live The King? A Gis Analysis Of Climate Change’S Impact On The Future Wintering Range And Economy Of The Monarch Butterfly (Danaus Plexippus) In Mexico, Megan E. Zagorski

Student Publications

The annual migration of the monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) is a natural phenomenon widely integrated into the popular and social imagination of North America. However, this migratory population has recently declined. I investigated the threat of climate change on the future distribution of suitable monarch habitat, using ArcGIS to create a model of current and future monarch habitat. I also analyzed municipal data for 5 communities in Mexico State in an examination of the social aspects of the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve [MBBR]. According to my model, an estimated 38.6% to 69.8% of current monarch habitat may be lost within …

A Critical Examination Of Private Conservation Areas On Campesino Community Lands In Peru, Megan Barnhart

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Community-owned private reserves are emerging around the world as an alternative to government-run resource management and as a way to more directly involve citizens as stewards of their local natural resources. Despite their recent proliferation globally, voluntary efforts by communities to include their land in protected area systems, and the motivations and expectations of their legal recognition remain largely unknown. This thesis examines community-owned private conservation areas in Northern Peru locally known as Áreas de Conservación Privadas (ACPs) which are voluntary and legally recognized by the Peruvian State. The study investigates the rationales and outcomes of the application of ACPs …

Cadê O Mico? Where Is The Tamarin?: Locating Monkeys In The Politics Of Land And Conservation In Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, Analía Villagra

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The golden lion tamarin is a small, endangered monkey found in only a few municipalities in the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. This dissertation explores the project to conserve this rare primate, a project that links together agrarian reform, forest restoration, agroforestry, and conservation biology. Informed by Brazil's social and political history, and drawing from 12 months of fieldwork conducted in 2008 and 2010, this dissertation argues that by looking carefully at and for the tamarin, we discover the interrelated political, social, and animal relationships that weave together to produce conservation in southeastern Brazil.

Political Ecology: An Analysis Of Peruvian Government Discourses In Support Of Road Projects, Juan Boettner

Environmental Studies Senior Seminar Projects

In this paper, I will explore the ways in which the Peruvian government supports road projects through various well-developed arguments. I will look at how authorities present and/or support road projects in different temporal and spatial scales. I will try to answer the following questions:

1) How has the Peruvian government’s arguments for improved connectivity changed over time?
2) What are the implications of such changes?

Answering these questions will help explain the government’s role and biases regarding economic development in Peru. Furthermore, answers to these questions can help us understand past positions and predict what the government’s position may …

Political Economy Of Policymaking In Paraguay, Robert Andrew Nickson

Robert Andrew Nickson

The main objective of this chapter is to analyze the public policymaking process in Paraguay, particularly with regard to the formulation and implementation of policies that affect the generation of remunerative employment. Concretely, the chapter addresses how the broad institutional (i.e., political, administrative and legal) environment influences—both negatively and positively—the potential for formulating and implementing a medium-term employment strategy for poverty reduction in Paraguay. The main policymaking focus of the employment strategy will be on the private sector. However, the potential contribution of an employment strategy for the public sector itself towards poverty reduction is also considered.

The formulation and …

Ua68/2 Intercambio Internacional, Vol. Xiv, No. 2, Wku Latin American Studies

WKU Archives Records

Newsletter created by WKU Latin American Studies program regarding science, politics and economic advances in Latin America as well as cooperative projects between WKU and universities across Latin America. The newsletter is written in both English and Spanish.